ABCd (ABC’s digital streaming service) has acquired American Koko starring and created by Diarra Kilpatrick. Emmy Award winning Actress Viola Davis will produce the series, and she will produce the series through her production company, JuVEe Productions. American Koko is a satirical series that solves sticky racial situations.

“Diarra is an exceptional talent in that she cannot be put in a category. She has a unique voice that transcends her generation. American Koko is brutally honest about race relations but avoids the trap of being an indictment. Rather it is a bold, brave cultural reveal handled with sensitivity, vulnerability, honesty and humor. JuVee Productions continues our mission to be inclusive and this project fits perfectly with our vision.” – Viola Davis

American Koko received the Best Web Series Award at the American Black Film Festival, and was recognized as a “Web Series You Should Be Watching” by Essence Magazine.

Kilpatrick is a writer and an actress and has starred in series such as Mike and Molly; Southland, Major Crimes, Private Practice, Hollywood Je T’aime, and Lila and Eve opposite Viola Davis. She won the LA Weekly and NAACP Theater award for Best Leading Actress in a Drama for The Red and Brown Water, and received two Ovation nominations, and five additional NAACP Theater nominations, including one for Best Playwriting for her one-woman show. In 2014 she was a writer for the NBC series The Mysteries of Laura, and was honored by the WGA Writer’s Access Program in 2015 for her drama pilot, The Dirty Dozen. She is currently developing The Climb for Amazon where she will write and star in the project.

“To be in business with the artist-friendly executives at ABC and to have the incredible guidance of Viola Davis and the team at JuVee on American Koko is a dream come true. I’ve always wanted to create and perform across mediums. And I’m excited for people to hear my voice and get to know me as a storyteller and an artist.” – Diarra Kilpatrick

About The Author

The HBR Media Team is a collective group of black women filmmakers, writers, and studio/network executives who are passionate about bringing visibility to women of African descent working in film and television.